The lawsuit between Park City Mountain Resort and its landlord, Talisker, is starting to get seriously ugly. Yesterday, a Talisker-owned firm presented PCMR officials with an eviction notice, stating that they must vacate the 3,700 acres of Talisker-owned land they operate on within five days, giving them until next Monday to do so. PCMR had earlier sued Talisker over their renewal of that lease, which dates back to the 1970s and has let Park City rent the ski terrain for the paltry sum of $155,000, which PCMR claims they renewed properly. But recent court documents has revealed an admittance by PCMR that they filed their lease renewal two days after the April 30, 2011 deadline and had incorrectly postdated the paperwork to be in time with the deadline. Talisker, in turn, has claimed the resort deliberately intended to deceive them, and in the eviction notice stated that:
"Despite our dispute and us not receiving a fair rent from you, we have made every effort to be constructive and patient with this process, because we know how important this situation is to the community in which we both operate. Unfortunately this is no longer just a good faith disagreement, but a question of how you have chosen to do business. Your backdating of this notice and your apparent efforts to keep it hidden force us to take a different approach to our dispute and long-term relationship." According to the Park Record, the outcome of this lawsuit could, if Talisker wins, result in PCMR being taken over by Vail Resorts, which signed a 50-year lease with Talisker to operate The Canyons. That lease agreement included the possibility of operating PCMR as well, and Vail assumed the lead role in the lawsuit on behalf of Talisker as part of the deal. While PCMR has claimed the eviction notice is a case of Vail's ruthless bullying, some locals counter that Park City is crying wolf, and keep their fingers crossed for an Epic Pass that would include both Park City and The Canyons.
· Talisker Corporation moves to evict PCMR in a matter of days [Park Record]
· PCMR vs. Talisker archives [Curbed Ski]